Israeli forces order Palestinian homeowner to stop construction works

Israel ordered the halt of repair work of a Palestinian house in the occupied West Bank's southern district of Hebron on Sunday.

Staff from the Israeli civil administration, backed by occupying military forces, stormed the al-Jawaya area, east of Yatta, and gave a warning to homeowner Hussain al-Nawaja'a, anti-settlement activist Rateb al-Jabour told Palestinian Authority's official news agency WAFA.

The warning ordered Nawaja'a to stop the construction works on his own house.

Jabour added that the construction was stopped under pretext of no permit.

Applications for building permits are known to take years to be processed, giving Israeli courts a loophole to demolish  Palestinian homes by branding structures as "illegal".

Between 2010 and 2014, only 1.5 percent of all Palestinian building permit applications were approved by Israel, according to the UN.

The cost of a permit for a single home is estimated to be in the region of $30,000.

Hebron is known to be an exceptionally hostile environment due to its high concentration of settlers in the city. Its Palestinian residents reportedly live in fear of Israeli aggression. 

Earlier this month, Israeli forces killed a deaf Palestinian father during violence in the occupied city.

More than 600,000 Israeli Jews live in settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, in constructions considered illegal under international law and a major impediment to peace.